Indecent Proposal
by wackyjacqs
Summary: As she sat on his rooftop and looked at the stars, she could feel her world start to crumble around her – again.


**A/N: Hope you all had a happy Valentine's Day and all the lovey dovey stuff that goes alongside it! :) My day consisted of watching some Stargate and eating my body weight in chocolate… a successful Valentine's all round, I say. **

**This fic has taken a very different route as to what I'd initially imagined, but I could say that for most of my stories, so… *shrugs* **

**Set around two weeks after 'Moebius'. This hasn't been beta read, so any mistakes are mine. Enjoy!**

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**Indecent Proposal**

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"...And then there was the time you drank that stuff on P3X-595 –"

"You said you wouldn't mention that again!"

Jack smirked into his bottle of Guinness at Sam's indignant tone. He took a healthy swig, as she continued talking.

"Anyway, I told you the drink tasted strange. It would when someone had spiked it!"

Jack's laughter slowly morphed into coughing as he choked on his beer. When he finally stopped, he noticed Sam watching him. Her arms were folded across her chest.

"It serves you right," she smirked.

He frowned. "What's that suppos–"

"All evening, you have reminisced about my most embarrassing moments on our missions... I wasn't the only one to do something stupid over the years, you know," she smiled mischievously.

"You're the only one here I can tease."

"That wasn't the point of me coming here though, was it?"

At her comment, Jack suddenly turned serious and sat back in his chair. He studied her, but then the intense look in his eye disappeared and his expression cleared.

"Alright, I won't mention 'the incident' anymore," he quipped, throwing in the appropriate air quotes.

Sam knew that wasn't what he had initially planned to say, but decided to let it go. Falling into an uncomfortable silence, Jack focused on his beer bottle, idly picking at the corner of the label, while Sam turned her attention to the night sky and identifying the various constellations, all the while curious about the General's solemn mood.

"Why _am_ I here?" she asked quietly, turning to look directly at the man beside her.

A wag of his eyebrows as he finished off his beer was the answer, causing Sam to roll her eyes.

"I'm serious, Jack. Ever since we started... _this_," she said, gesturing between the two of them, "You've never had to ask me to come to your house. What's so different about tonight?"

She could see the muscles in his jaw twitch. Realizing he was deciding how to answer her question, she didn't push for a response. After a couple of minutes however, Sam was worried he had forgotten her question. She thought briefly about repeating herself when –

"Hammond's retiring," Jack finally said, his eyes trained on his beer.

Sam, slightly confused at the non sequitur, was unable to hide her surprise. "Oh! That's... That'll be nice for the General," she said. "I know he's wanted to retire for a while."

"Yeah. He wants to spend more time with Kayla and Tessa; can't say I blame him," Jack added. "He's given a lot to the Program."

Sam nodded in agreement, and at that moment, Jack tore his gaze away from the bottle and towards her. "We all have," he murmured.

The intensity in his gaze was back and Sam could feel her heartbeat start to quicken. She couldn't read his expression, but she instinctively knew Jack wasn't telling her everything. There was tension in the way he held himself and it was making her nervous. She suddenly wondered if she was going to like the rest of the conversation.

"Have they decided who is going replace the General?"

"Yeah."

When he didn't expand on his answer, Sam resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Is it someone we know?"

"Yup."

His unwillingness to cooperate started to set alarm bells ringing in Sam's head and she straightened. "Jack? Who is it?"

The moment he looked away was the moment Sam had her answer.

"It's you, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

As she sat on his rooftop observatory, she could feel her world start to crash around her. Again.

She didn't know what to do, or even what she was feeling, but everything was hazy. She vaguely heard herself congratulate the General as her military training had kicked in and she saw him wave off her words, but it was only when he reached over and placed a hand on her arm that she snapped out of her trance.

"Sam? Y'alright?"

She nodded slowly, then paused and shook her head. "I… don't know."

When Jack's concern increased she added, "I mean, I – I'm just surprised, I think. Not at your promotion," she continued hastily, realizing how it sounded, "but... well, at your promotion."

"Tell me about it," he grumbled before running a hand roughly over his face. "Look, Carter – _Sam_... This – this isn't what I wanted, but –"

"You don't need to explain yourself, Sir," she cut in.

"No, I do," he said, ignoring her tone.

"Sir –"

"Carter! _Please?_"

His quiet plea surprised Sam and she looked at him. Really looked at him. He seemed to have aged – like a man who literally had the weight of the world on his shoulders. Feeling a little chastised at her initial reaction, Sam waited quietly, knowing he would talk when he was ready.

"I wanted to retire – _again _– but... George beat me to it," he grinned. When his attempt at humor failed, he sighed. "This job... it's big."

"They – the President, Hammond, Joint Chiefs, whatever – they know what they want, _who _they want. Hayes... He's a good guy, Carter. He gets what _this _is all about," he said, gesturing vaguely to the starry sky. "The Program is in a mess after everything that's happened lately. It's going to take a while to sort, but they said it would be easier – and better – if it has someone with first-hand experience working behind the scenes."

Sam found herself nodding.

"I mean, I don't know what they think_ I'll_ be able to do," he added. "Especially when it comes to the paperwork – but... well, it's a hell of a lot better than having someone like Kinsey in charge."

Jack sighed, then looked at Sam. "I don't have a choice, Sam."

She closed her eyes. Deep down, she knew he was right about the situation, but it didn't mean she had to like it.

"You're leaving."

He nodded once.

"So, what now?" She finally asked, wincing at how her voice cracked.

"I've to be in Washington two days from now. I'll know more then."

"That's not what I meant."

Jack tilted his head to the side. "I don't know," he eventually admitted.

Sam huffed out a breath, her frustration at the situation starting to simmer under the surface. "We waited eight years, Jack and just when we started –"

Cutting herself off, she took a deep breath. "I just, after everything, I thought it was finally time. For _us_," she whispered.

"There shouldn't even be an 'us' right now, Carter," he shot back, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

His outburst made Sam jump and before realized, she was out of her chair.

"Don't you think I know that?" she asked incredulously, as she paced along the confined space. "But we decided - _we_ \- that after so long, it was what we _wanted_... that it was worth the risk."

Effortlessly getting to his feet, Jack now stood before Sam, their faces just inches apart.

"Your career is too important, Sam."

"I'm willing to take the risk."

Jack closed his eyes at her defiant tone and sighed. When he spoke, his words were so quiet, he almost hoped Sam hadn't heard them.

"I'm not," he admitted.

**TBC...**


End file.
